Analysis of yield attributes and crop physiological traits of Liangyoupeijiu,a hybrid rice recently bred in China

Crop physiological traits of Liangyoupeijiu, a “super” hybrid rice variety recently bred in China, were compared with those of Takanari and Nipponbare in 2003 and 2004 in Kyoto, Japan. Liangyoupeijiu showed a significantly higher grain yield than Nipponbare in both years, and achieved a grain yield of 11.8 t ha⁻¹ in 2004, which is the highest yield observed under environmental conditions in Kyoto. Liangyoupeijiu had longer growth duration and larger leaf area duration (LAD) before heading, causing larger biomass accumulation before heading than the other two varieties. Liangyoupeijiu had a large number of grains and translocated a large amount of carbohydrates from the vegetative organ to the panicle during the grain filling period. The three yield components measured were panicle weight at heading (P₀), the amount of carbohydrates translocated from the leaf and stem to the panicle during the grain filling period (ΔT), and the newly assimilated carbohydrates during grain filling (ΔW). It was found that the sum of P₀ and ΔT were strongly correlated with grain yield when all the data (n = 8) were combined (r = 0.876**). However, there was no significant difference in the radiation use efficiency (RUE) of the whole growth period between Liangyoupeijiu and Nipponbare for both years. Even though the growth duration was shorter, Takanari, an indica/japonica cross-bred variety, showed a similar yield to Liangyoupeijiu in both years. The mean RUE of the whole growth period was significantly higher in Takanari, 1.60 and 1.64 g MJ⁻¹ in 2003 and 2004, respectively, than in Liangyoupeijiu, which had a RUE of 1.46 and 1.52 g MJ⁻¹ in 2003 and 2004, respectively. The high grain yield of Takanari was mainly due to its high RUE compared with Liangyoupeijiu and its large P₀ and ΔT. Our result showed that the high grain yield of Liangyoupeijiu was due to its large biomass accumulation before heading, which resulted from its large LAD rather than its RUE.     

Radiation use efficiency,N accumulation and biomass production of high-yielding rice in aerobic culture

The concept of aerobic culture is to save water resource while maintaining high productivity in irrigated rice ecosystem. This study compared nitrogen (N) accumulation and radiation use efficiency (RUE) in the biomass production of rice crops in aerobic and flooded cultures. The total water input was 800–1300 mm and 1500–3500 mm in aerobic culture and flooded culture, respectively, and four high-yielding rice cultivars were grown with a high rate of N application (180 kg N ha⁻¹) at two sites (Tokyo and Osaka) in Japan in 2007 and 2008. The aboveground biomass and N accumulation at maturity were significantly higher in aerobic culture (17.2–18.5 t ha⁻¹ and 194–233  kg N ha⁻¹, respectively) than in flooded culture (14.7–15.8 t ha⁻¹ and 142–173 kg N ha⁻¹) except in Tokyo in 2007, where the surface soil moisture content frequently declined. The crop maintained higher N uptake in aerobic culture than in flooded culture, because in aerobic culture there was a higher N accumulation rate in the reproductive stage. RUE in aerobic culture was comparable to, or higher than, that in flooded culture (1.27–1.50 g MJ⁻¹ vs. 1.20–1.37 g MJ⁻¹), except in Tokyo in 2007 (1.30 g MJ⁻¹ vs. 1.37 g MJ⁻¹). These results suggest that higher biomass production in aerobic culture was attributable to greater N accumulation, leading to higher N concentration (N%) than in flooded culture. Cultivar differences in response to water regimes were thought to reflect differences in mainly (1) early vigor and RUE under temporary declines in soil moisture in aerobic culture and (2) the ability to maintain high N% in flooded culture.     

Is barley yield in the UK sink limited?: II. Factors affecting potential grain size

In the absence of serious post-anthesis stress, the potential supply of assimilates for grain filling in barley appears to exceed the storage (sink) capacity of the grains. The sink capacity is a function of the number of grains per unit land area and their potential size. In order to investigate the contribution of pre and early post-anthesis factors in the control of potential grain weight, regression analysis has been used to analyse data from field experiments conducted on winter barley crops cv. Pearl grown at six sites across the UK between 2002 and 2004. Crops were grown under a comparable husbandry regime with a full crop protection, growth regulator and fertilizer programme. The mean grain weight (MGW) varied from 35 to 46 mg at 100% dry matter over 17 site/year combinations. The variation in MGW between site/years was associated with differences in the rate rather than the duration of grain filling. MGW did not relate well to any measure of above ground growth or crop structure at ear emergence (Zadoks GS59). There was a significant positive linear relationship between MGW and the amount of radiation (PAR) intercepted per unit grain number between ear emergence and the start of rapid grain filling (r² = 0.32, P = 0.023), but not over the whole grain filling period. This is consistent with the view that MGW is determined by potential grain size. A multiple regression model comprising five explanatory variables accounted for a much larger proportion of the total variation in MGW (r² = 0.72, P = 0.013) than PAR interception on its own. There were significant positive associations of MGW with post-anthesis radiation use efficiency and PAR intercepted from GS59 to the start of rapid grain growth (RGG), and significant negative associations with the shoot number per plant, mean air temperature from GS39–59 and mean daily rainfall from GS59-RGG. The results suggest that both pre and post-anthesis conditions operate in concert to determine the potential grain weight of barley in temperate climates. The dry weight and water content of grains and ears followed a common pattern during grain growth for all site/years when the percentage moisture content was used as an index to normalise different rates of development. Use of the above data for predicting potential grain weight of barley prior to harvest is discussed.     

Is barley yield in the UK sink limited?: I. Post-anthesis radiation interception,radiation-use efficiency and source–sink balance

Source or sink limitation of grain filling in cereals is often inferred from experiments in which the source:sink ratio is manipulated by shading, defoliation or grain removal. However, interpretation of this type of experiment is usually qualitative rather than quantitative in nature and the extent of any imbalance between the source and sink is not known. The objectives of the current work were: (1) to provide a detailed analysis of radiation interception, radiation-use efficiency (RUE) and carbohydrate storage reserves in winter barley in order to quantify the potential supply of photosynthates for grain filling; (2) to estimate the variation in source–sink balance between environments. Field experiments were conducted on cv Pearl at six sites in the UK and over 3 years. Crops were grown under a comparable husbandry regime at each site and received a full fertilizer and crop protection programme. When the cumulative interception of post-anthesis photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) was plotted against the increase in biomass to determine RUE, the pattern of response differed between sites and years; for some site/years the response was linear, for others it was non-linear where RUE decreased during the latter stages of grain filling. The extent and statistical significance of non-linearity was determined from the quadratic term of fitted 2nd order polynomials. There was no significant association between climatic variables, such as temperature, radiation or rainfall, and the value of the quadratic term of RUE. Neither could non-linearity of RUE be explained in terms of the shedding of leaf tissue during canopy senescence. There were weak associations (r² < 0.3) between the extent of non-linearity and green area index (GAI), above-ground biomass, and specific leaf N, at ear emergence (Zadoks GS 59). A much stronger relationship (r² = 0.63) was found between the source:sink ratio (green area per grain) at GS 59 and non-linearity of RUE. These results suggest that a major factor leading to the reduction in RUE during the second half of grain filling at some sites was feedback inhibition from a limited sink capacity. This conclusion is supported by a fairly strong positive association between RUE non-linearity and the apparent contribution of stem carbohydrate reserves to grain yield (r² = 0.47). The potential assimilate supply for grain filling was estimated as (maximum post-anthesis RUE × PAR intercepted) + stem soluble carbohydrate reserves at GS 59. The potential supply exceeded the measured yield at all sites except one implying that crops were predominantly sink limited. The size of the excess, which is a measure of the relative source–sink balance during grain filling, differed widely between site/years.     

Effects of soil compaction in the sub-humid cropping environment in Pakistan on uptake of NPK and grain yield in wheat (Triticum aestivum): II: Alleviation

Alleviation of soil compaction can be achieved through application of appropriate measures which will vary from soil to soil and with the socio-economic factors of the farmers. The effects of alleviation measures applied to artificially compacted soil on yield components, grain yield, dry matter and nutrient uptake by wheat was studied at the Agriculture Research Institute, Mingora, Pakistan, in two separate experiments in 2002–2003 and 2003–2004. The improvement measures included deep ploughing (DP), farmyard manure (FYM) and gypsum (GYP), and comprised a compacted control and four treatments T1 (control), T2 (DP), T3 (DP + FYM), T4 (DP + gypsum) and T5 (DP + FYM + GYP), arranged in completely randomized block design replicated four times. Improvement measures applied to compacted soil significantly decreased soil bulk density and increased total porosity. Bulk density decreased in the range of 12–15% while total porosity showed an increase of 16–23% over the control. Improvement measures significantly increased concentration and uptake of NPK in both years. Higher concentration and uptake was recorded during the second year as compared to the first year, probably as a result of higher seasonal rainfall in the second year. The uptake of NPK by wheat plants increased in the range of 43–51, 25–94 and 11–28%, respectively, over plants in the compacted control. Similarly, improvement treatments increased grains spike⁻¹, thousand grain weight, dry matter accumulation and grain yield in the range of 14–21, 5–14, 3–10 and 21–37% respectively, over the control. This work demonstrates that it is possible to overcome the deleterious effects of compaction induced by wheeled traffic, and improve crop yields and nutrient uptake in intensive cropping systems in rainfed environments in Pakistan and similar environments.     

Effects of free air carbon dioxide enrichment and nitrogen supply on growth and yield of winter barley cultivated in a crop rotation

The increase in atmospheric CO₂ concentration [CO₂] has been demonstrated to stimulate growth of C₃ crops. Although barley is one of the important cereals of the world, little information exists about the effect of elevated [CO₂] on grain yield of this crop, and realistic data from field experiments are lacking. Therefore, winter barley was grown within a crop rotation over two rotation cycles (2000 and 2003) at present and elevated [CO₂](375 ppm and 550 ppm) and at two levels of nitrogen supply (adequate (N2): 262 kg ha⁻¹ in 1st year and 179 kg ha⁻¹ in 2nd year) and 50% of adequate (N1)). The experiments were carried out in a free air CO₂ enrichment (FACE) system in Braunschweig, Germany. The reduction in nitrogen supply decreased seasonal radiation absorption of the green canopy under ambient [CO₂] by 23%, while CO₂ enrichment had a positive effect under low nitrogen (+8%). Radiation use efficiency was increased by CO₂ elevation under both N levels (+12%). The CO₂ effect on final above ground biomass was similar for both nitrogen treatments (N1: +16%; N2: +13%). CO₂ enrichment did not affect leaf biomass, but increased ear and stem biomass. In addition, final stem dry weight was higher under low (+27%) than under high nitrogen (+13%). Similar findings were obtained for the amount of stem reserves available during grain filling. Relative CO₂ response of grain yield was independent of nitrogen supply (N1: +13%; N2: +12%). The positive CO₂ effect on grain yield was primarily due to a higher grain number, while changes of individual grain weight were small. This corresponds to the findings that under low nitrogen grain growth was unaffected by CO₂ and that under adequate nitrogen the positive effect on grain filling rate was counterbalanced by shortening of grain filling duration.     

Perennial hybrids of Oryza sativa × Oryza rufipogon: Part II. Carbon exchange and assimilate partitioning

Oryza species differ in their degree of perenniality, which has implications for patterns of carbon distribution in the plant. Interspecific F₁ hybrids of Oryza sativa × Oryza rufipogon were compared with their parental lines to assess whether they differed in assimilate storage and distribution at flowering and after maturity of the first cohort of panicles. The F₁ hybrids varied widely in plant type, but on average they had small plant size and low main tiller weights at anthesis, similar to O. rufipogon, and had intermediate tiller numbers and final single plant weights similar to cultivated rice. O. rufipogon had higher concentrations of starch in stems at anthesis, while interspecific hybrids exhibited comparatively low leaf, stem + sheath, and root sugar concentrations. Near anthesis, substantial ¹⁴C label remained in the source (flag) leaf in O. sativa and F₁ hybrids, while in O. rufipogon more label was exported to sink tissues. The hybrids partitioned more ¹⁴C label to panicles than did cultivated rice and less to leaf sheaths than either parent. Hybrids that had previously been identified as having above-average carbon exchange rates (CER) did not differ consistently from the low-CER hybrids in carbohydrate dynamics. The cultivated species itself maintains some perennial features, and changes in these traits might increase productivity.     

Investigating early vigour in upland rice (Oryza sativa L.): Part II. Identification of QTLs controlling early vigour under greenhouse and field conditions

Early vigour is an important characteristic for direct-seeded rice systems. The genetic control of early vigour was studied using a population of 129 backcross lines derived from a cross between Vandana, an improved indica, and Moroberekan, a traditional japonica. Screening was conducted under controlled conditions in greenhouse and field conditions, and indicators of early vigour, including shoot length, shoot biomass, leaf area, number of roots, root biomass, partitioning coefficients, and growth rates, were measured. Phenotypic correlations suggested that traits that were related and combined could be used to define early vigour. Broad-sense heritability ranged from moderate to high. Many regions were identified containing more than one QTL, suggesting that these traits were controlled by pleiotropic and/or closely linked QTLs. Many QTLs were specific to one environment but G × E interaction analysis showed that the main effects of the environment were large. Differences in temperature between experiments resulted in large differences in seedling age when expressed in thermal time. Different genes (QTLs) may be expected to control growth at different time intervals and thus may partly explain the limited agreement between experiments. However, several regions showed co-location of QTLs from more than one experiment. Comparisons with published studies revealed that these regions were previously identified in different genetic backgrounds and could potentially be used as introgression targets in a marker-assisted breeding program to improve germplasm for direct-seeded environments.     

Canopy reflectance in two castor bean varieties (Ricinus communis L.) for growth assessment and yield prediction on coastal saline land of Yancheng District, China

A field experiment was conducted in 2007-2009 in coastal saline regions of Yancheng city in Jiangsu province of China (120°13′E, 33°38′N). The experiment was to investigate relationships among canopy spectral reflectance, canopy chlorophyll density (CCD), leaf area index (LAI), and yield of two Chinese castor varieties (Zi Bi var. and Yun Bi var.) across four N fertilizer rates of 0, 90, 180, and 360 kg N ha⁻¹. These N rates were used to generate a wide range of difference in canopy structure and seed yield. Measurements of canopy reflectance were made throughout the growing season using a hand-held spectroradiometer. Samples for CCD and LAI were obtained on days that reflectance measurements were made. Fifteen hyperspectral reflectance indices were calculated. Canopy spectral characteristics were heavily influenced by saline soil background in the rapid growing period (RGP), thus hyperspectral data obtained in this period were not suited for reflecting castor growth condition or predicting final yield. CCD increased linearly with most reflectance indices in the full coverage period (FCP) and senescent period (SP) for the two castor varieties, whereas LAI did not. Most of reflectance indices were significantly correlated with yield of two varieties in different growing periods. The OSAVI model provided the best yield prediction for Zi Bi var. with predicted values very close to observed ones (R² = 0.799), and the mSRVI705 model was well used for Yun Bi var. yield estimation (R² = 0.759). These results indicate that the hyperspectral data measured at appropriate time could be well used for castor yield estimation.